Race Distances

Gear

Freebies

...And Other Things...

Increasing Running Speed

by Issam Labadi
(Oman)

Hello, I am an 18 yo male, about 180cm and weigh 65kg. There is an event every year here and everybody runs about 2.2km.

I go running 4-5 days a week and I usually run 2.2km at a fast pace (8:50) or 3.7km at a slow pace (17:45) depending on the mood... my aim is to beat the first guy in cross country (2.2km) whose time was 8 minutes.

So I am basically around 1 minute behind. The event is next year so I have time but I am willing to push the training sessions quite intensely.

How can I improve my speed and running endurance for 2.2km and cover the distance in less than 8 minutes? Should I run slow for a much longer distance (7km)? Or run 2.2km as fast as I can everyday?

If I cover 2.2km as fast as I can (for now) I take 8:50. If I go at a slow pace with going a far distance in mind (3.8km) I reach the 2.2km in 9:30. Thank you for the help in advance. =)

Answer by Dominique:

Hi there,Thanks for your running training question. Well, the good thing is that you are pretty fast already, the bad thing is that you are one minute behind, which is > 10%, so yes, some work will have to be done...

The main key to becoming faster is, at first, to run slower and further. At first. 2.2km is predominantly an aerobic race. You need stamina, a strong aerobic base. I would encourage you to first build up your running training to a point where you can quite comfortably run 10k. Not fast, just conversational pace. Also check out my Base Running-page.

Once you can do that comfortably, test yourself on that 2.2km. I would hope that you'd already be faster at that point in time, although your legs might feel slow because of the slower running you have done. So even if you are not faster at that point in time, don't worry, we'll just get to the next stage.

After that, start working on adding in some Tempo Running. This will improve your lactate threshold. So you would now be doing long runs, easy runs and once or twice a week tempo runs.

Then, much closer to the race, work on Interval Running as well. This will improve your body's ability to deliver oxygen to the muscles and will help you get used (to some extent) to running with lactic acid in your legs.

This way, you should see quite some improvement in your running times. I am not sure if you will break the 8 min goal you set yourself. That will depend on your abilities / your talent and your commitment to the task. But this at least uses the right building blocks at the right time. I can also wholeheartedly recommend Daniels' Running Formula.

This book contains a lot of information about why you need the different running speeds, but also contains running training templates that allow you to put together your own running training plan.

Get Marathon Training Secrets Nowand...
KILL Your Next Marathon

Best of luck with your running and keep us posted on whether you win the race or not!Cheers,Dominique

Comments for Increasing Running Speed

honestly, i have been running since last summer with no idea on what to do exactly. i have been simply running randomly. your gave me a very clear idea on how to work on it. thank you so much! just one thing kind of caught my attention when you said "I am not sure if you will break the 8 min goal you set yourself" is it really hard? before yesterday, i reached it in 8:40 (now around 40 seconds away?) it is just that i get too exhausted after it (and i stop in the middle for few seconds) and i feel like my lungs are the ones that dont last rather than my body (i Dont smoke lol :P)
but in anyway, u have helped me a lot with your tips and thank you very much for the advices. i will post back to notify other readers if it worked or not after a certain period ;)

Feb 25, 2010Rating

No worriesby: Dominique

Hi Issam,
No worries, man, happy to help.
I am not saying the 8 minutes is impossible for you. I just don't know how well you will improve. The good thing is that it is probably 10% talent and 90% hard work, so as long as you put in the hard work, I have good hopes that you will be fine.
Good luck.
Cheers,
Dominique (webmaster)